Laabi, Abdellatif (Ferlinghetti, Lawrence)

Les Fruits du Corps

ISBN: 2729114718
Paris, France: La Difference, 2003. First Edition, First Printing. From the library of Lawrence Ferllinghetti, with dated gift inscription to him from author Abdellatif Laabi. "Everything which the Arab reality offers that is generous, open and creative is crushed by regimes whose only anxiety is to perpetuate their own power and self-serving interest. And what is often worse is to see that the West remains insensitive to the daily tragedy while at the same time accommodating, not to say supporting, the ruling classes who strangle the free will and aspirations of their people." (Abdellatif Laâbi, The world's embrace: selected poems). Offered today is the seminal book of poetry, Les Fruits du Corps or The Fruits of the Body (in English) by Abdellatif Laâbi (b. 1942), the Moroccan poet, journalist, novelist, playwright, translator and political activist. Laâbi was jailed, tortured and sentenced to ten years in prison for his political beliefs and his writings and served a sentence from 1972 to 1980. While imprisoned Laâbi was still able to publish two works, Le Règne de barbarie and Histoire des sept crucifiés de l'espoir. In 1985 he was forced into exile in France. Laâbi eventually became a member of the Académie Mallarmé in 1988. A prolific novelist, poet and playwright, he is also the French translator of the Palestinian poet, Mahmoud Darwish, the Moroccan poet Abdallah Zrika, the Iraqi poet Abdelawahab Al Bayati and the Syrian novelist Hanna Minna. His own work has been translated into Arabic, Spanish, German, Italian, Dutch, Turkish and English. Untranslated in its original French language form. At front endpaper, Laâbi has inscribed & signed (seemingly in the Ferlinghetti style) in blue ink: "to Ferlinghetti | from | (signed) Laâbi | 6/03". From the library of the late, great Lawrence Ferlinghetti, (1919-2021) the iconic American poet & founder of City Lights Books, publisher of many Beat Generation writers. Trade-format Softcover original in sewn binding: First edition; first printing though neither indicated as such at copyright page (although likely first printing indicated by customary French colophon with publication of April 2003 at verso of final leaf & date of Laâbi's inscription only two months thereafter). A hypnotically compelling collectible of Laâbi's masterful poetry, in its rarest contemporary form; inestimably enriched by his poet-to-poet inscription & with distinguished, relevant association & provenance. In relatively fine-to-very-fine condition with light rubbing, scratching to front, back covers and spine; tiny bumps to corners of front & back covers; some age-toning and chipping to text block. Interior fine-to-very-fine with some age-toning mostly to blank margins of page leaves. Fine-Very Fine. [Item #8020]

Price: $50.00